How far along in the GC Fire Emblem are you guys? I think the GC one is much better than Sacred Stones. The map design is much better and there's more variety in each level. I particularly love the optional mission objectives, such as "Don't engage certain enemies, etc...".

I am up to chapter 12.

What is dissapointing to me is all cosmetic. The animations for battles were so boring I turned them off and that is something I really enjoyed with GBA games. I also find the animations for the mounted units moving to be ugly - especially when they move diagonally...it just looks bad.

I am also very annoyed that you can't full rotate the map. I mean come on! You have the power of the Cube and you couldn't make it so I can see every side?

All in all it feels like the built a good game which could go on any system - picked the Cube and did a tiny amount of improvements then shipped. They just seem to have wasted all the opportunities that more powerful hardware gave them.

"To clarify, the 'new' version of Halo or Halo 2 is simply the disk you have already. Pop it into your 360 and it'll load up just like before. You will have to log into Xbox Live to enable Halo 2's online functions, but both games will work immediately.

This would seem to imply that no new coding is needed, does that mean that all Xbox games (which work) will be able to do this?

Or did they somehow put into the 360 special instructions for the Halo games?

How is this even remotely the same? That DRM software doesn't stop me from playing my music CD in any cd player I want. It only prevents me copying the music to x number of other computers or mp3 players. I've never been able to copy PS2 games to my computer, or other types of entertainment devices.

What farley mentioned is that you can only play the PS3 games on your single PS3, and no others, nor sell them. Its completely different. Sony Music is trying to stop the easy sharing/stealing of mp3 files, not preventing you from listening to the CD you purchased in multiple players.

I imagine if you couldn't rent, ebay, or play your games on your friends PS3, it would hurt sales lots faster then CDs that can't have their music shared for free.

It isn't a great analogy I agree but it does has some similarities.

I think what it really shows - the music side - is that Sony isn't really concerned about consumers. Look at the whole "rootkit" situation.

I think we have a company that feels it is so important that people will buy their products no matter what they do....and they are somewhat right. Look at the thread on OO about boycotting Sony. People are willing to put up with a lot of shit!

I am trying to decide between DQ8 and the new fire emblem for game cube. I have to actually repurchase either the PS2 or Gamecube to do this so I cant afford both. Is DQ8 going to be good enough to select over fire emblem?

I am really enjoying Fire Emblem for the Cube but I have to say it isn't as good as the ones for the GBA. So I would buy a used GBA (if you don't have one) and get Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones used - maybe $90 total and then get a used PS2 and new DQ8.

”A device and method for protection of legitimate software against used software and counterfeit software in recording media… A specific title code is read, and if this title code has been registered, the main unit shifts to a normal operation. If the code has not been registered, verification software is initiated… If matching does not occur, the disk is processed as illegitimate software… Since only titles for which legitimate software has actually been purchased and which have been initially registered in the machine table can be used, resale (so-called used software purchase) after purchase by an end-user becomes practically impossible.”

If that turns out to be true I won't get a PS3. I rent 90% of the games I play and buy used about 9%. Only the exceptional game (like Dragon Warrior VIII) will I buy new.

So I just won't buy something that invasive. Up until now the gaming section of Sony has been separate from the asshats in the music area but it appears they want to start spreading to the whole company.

Basically your theory is saying that stores are willing to give up making more money because of security risks. I don't buy that.

Sure a great number of people will buy a 360 a week later....but some won't. Some will buy something else and I cannot imagine any store being willing to take that risk.

Thier greed for money money would prevent them from giving up sales becuase of security for employees. I am sure some bean counter has already figured out how many stores robbed vs. lost sales due to shortages.

Zelda will make them money with people who already own the Cube, and as can be seen they certainly don't have a problem makeing new Zelda games for different consoles. They may as well put it out, then make a new one for the Revolution.

I don't seem much advantage to moving it except to sell Revolution consoles, but they could just as easily make a new title for the Revolution. Why waste all the work already put into the Cube version?

Meh. Who cares. People need to get comfortable with the concept of delayed gratification.

That is a cute statement and all but it pretty much doesn't mean anything.

Americans don't "need" to get comfortable with delayed gratification - in fact our consumer society is built on not delaying gratification. Just look at the massive credit card debt if you think people are delaying anything.

And since our society is the most powerful and the envy of most other societies I would say that the concept works rather well.

I think the main reason for Bethesda's silence -- up until today -- has to do with Take Two's "interesting" financial practices. Their quarter ended yesterday, and as Bill Harris talks about in his blog (part way down the page), they kept the Oblivion date-slide underwraps so they could fool their stockholders.

I imagine Bethesda had their hands quite firmly tied about getting out any accurate information on the state of the game.

I think that is correct which would make their comments lies - i.e. intentional deception. They knew the game wouldn't be out but they said it would. Now it may have been becuase Take Two made them but that doesn't change the fact that they knew the truth.

So what does that mean? (if anything) I remember a people stating that the big issue with this generation would be storage space...but these comments seem to be saying they will keep making games of only DVD size....so is storage space really not an issue?

Seriously though - good for them if they do delay. I imagine MS is putting a lot of pressure on them and it would take a lot of guts so resist that.

And maybe it will just be the PC version, which is fine and make sense. Personally I think it is dumb to say they will be out at the same time. The 360 is known hardware and software in a known configuration. There are thousands of PC configs, hardware and at least 3 OSes they would support. That is a ton more work.

They should have said a long time ago that they were only going to have the 360 version out this year. It would put less pressure on them, create less speculation with fans and in the end make both products better.

I finished up my play through Sacred Stones and I couldn't help myself I started playing again! I hardly ever play games twice. I can probably count on one hand the number of games I have played all the way through more than once.

Then to top it off I went out and bought the Path of Radiance for the Cube. I just can't get enough of this game!

I thought you hated Fire Emblem?

Me too! I gave up on the first FE for the GBA. I even tried to play it twice but got really fustrated by the difficulty.

I don't know if I have gotten smarter (yeah right) or if the game is easier or what but I have been doing much better and enjoying these much more.

One thing which did help a lot with SS was the ability to do extra battles on the map. I could level up characters in the tower, or with monster battles which popped up sometimes.

I don't think PoR has that so I may end up hating it as I hated the first GBA FE but maybe it has me hooked enough now that I will want to keep trying.

I haven't played enough PoR to compare. I like some of the little things I have noticed so far like it listing your weapon level with the equiped weapon and being able to move your mounted units after an attack. However I am not overly impressed with the games looks yet. It is nice but not great and they could have made it great with the Cube's hardware.

I finished up my play through Sacred Stones and I couldn't help myself I started playing again! I hardly ever play games twice. I can probably count on one hand the number of games I have played all the way through more than once.

Then to top it off I went out and bought the Path of Radiance for the Cube. I just can't get enough of this game!

How far up Rockstar's asses can IGN get? If you read their reviewit seems clear the game is not great.

1. they describe the targeting system as "this targeting system feels downright broken when in comparison to other 3D action titles."

2. missions vary from way to hard to way to easy.

3. load times sound terrible! "More importantly though, these travel-intensive missions become wildly time consuming -- Every mission in LCS takes only five to ten minutes of action to complete, but then there's the five minutes of travel and two minutes of load times to consider. Plus, some of the missions can be tough, so you'll try each several times."

4. the travel system sounds annoying. "LCS includes a taxi cab system where a taxi ferries you back to a mission when you die. But the consequences for using this system are way too severe. To start, you lose every single weapon in your possession. And if you had body armor you lose that also. Certain weapons are very rare and some are just expensive. Either way you never, ever want to lose them. So taking a taxi after losing a mission is a total non-option."

5. you can't save at any time. "Add this to the fact you can't save the game wherever you want (only at three safe houses) and things become very unfriendly."

Those things are not terrible to be sure but taken as a whole the review reads like the game is a "B" title at best. However since it is Rockstar the game is given a 9.0

It is funny, with high profile games like this it feels like you have to read the reviews (and read between the lines sometimes) to get a true picture of how the game is becuase their score is always going to be high.

Take using the bow for example. Right after shooting my arrow I want to run to climb the colossus, makes sense right? But even after you put away the bow the left thumb stick moves the camera for a few seconds, so you can't run right away...annoying.

The camera is a bitch in lots of other ways as well and basically makes me want to scream. I don't like games where the toughness is due to design issues rather than gameplay.

I loved ICO so I will give it a bit more of a try but so far I am not really impressed.

Curiously how can you be so certain that PS3 will have these features come release? They have already begun cutting features. Until the final system specs come out no one knows what it will do. (Also due to the integration with WMC, one never knows what might be streamable to the 360 from the PC).

I don't think anyone can be certain, but this would be the most boring thread ever if we stuck only to what we are certain about. We have many details about the 360 but not all I would bet, and practically none about the PS3. So there really isn't much to say but someone started the thread!

The rabid Sony fans are exactly the same way and you know it. Feel free to get annoyed and roll your eyes at the hypocrisy of the MS fans. You are absolutely correct. But to pretend for one second that Sony or Nintendo fans don't act the exact same way is just silly. It doesn't make it right of course, but its the prevalent attitude of all hardcore blinder fans.

I agree but so far I haven't heard the Sony or Nintendo "spin" on why they are better. On the other hand I have read a lot of MS's "spin"

That is natural because the 360 is just around the corner whereas the rest of players are far away.

I promise you this when I hear the Sony party line I will point out how it is hypocritical as well.

On the processor power debate.... I think in current gen, the hardware was the limiting factor to what a developer could do. Now with the hardware being much faster in the 360 and PS3, it is no longer limiting, so ease of development etc. become more important.

You may be right but I find it just to conicidental to be random that last gen Xbox was more powerful and power mattered, now Xbox has better tools/easier development....and look it is ease of development that is important!

Now personally I own all three current consoles (as well as a DS and PSP) so I hope they all suceed.

One thing I do find very funny about the whole debate is the importance of processing power.

When the Xbox came out fans couldn't crow loudly enough about how it was more powerful than the PS2 - in fact they still do.

However when it became clear that with the next generation Sony would have the more powerful machine suddenly raw power doesn't matter. The comments by carmack are a prime example. Oh, power - that isn't important! But I remember him making comments when iD first started developing for the Xbox about how the Xbox's power was what made it the only console he would develop on.

The hypocracy of some MS fans just floors me. It is basically whatever MS does/has is better. They have more power that is all important, they don't...well it doesn't matter at all.

As for Sony overall- I can't stand their products nor the arrogance with which they develop and deliver them. I hate the little things they do to make them 'unique' that sacrifices usability and defacto-ness.

Odd, I tend to think that about Microsoft. When I think about forced browser integration, media player, etc. I see MS as the arrogant one pushing stuff and forcing everyone to play along.